CODE OF LAWS OF FULTON COUNTY
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Published in 1997 by Order of the Board of Commissioners
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OFFICIALS
OF
FULTON COUNTY, GEORGIA
AT THE TIME OF THIS CODIFICATION
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Mitch J. Skandalakis, Chairman (District 1, At-Large)
Nancy A. Boxill, Vice Chair (District 6)
Gordon L. Joyner, Commissioner (District 2, At-Large)
Robert E. Fulton, Commissioner (District 3)
Tom Lowe, Commissioner (District 4)
Emma I. Darnell, Commissioner (District 5)
Michael Hightower, Commissioner (District 7)Board of Commissioners
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Robert "Bob" Regus
County Manager
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Susan B. Forsling
County Attorney
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Justine Boyd
Clerk to the Board of Commissioners
PREFACE OF THE COUNTY ATTORNEY
The Code of Laws of Fulton County is a unique assemblage of state laws of local and general application, provisions of the Constitution of the State of Georgia relating to counties and Fulton County Ordinances and Resolutions, which together not only define the jurisdiction and authority of Fulton County elected and appointed officials, but reflect policies and procedures adopted by the Board of Commissioners of Fulton County. While both ordinances and resolutions are adopted by the Board of Commissioners of Fulton County, violations of ordinances are considered misdemeanors. Resolutions, however, establish policy and offer directives to Fulton County employees.
The County Attorney has attempted to include all provisions of the Constitution of the State of Georgia, state and local laws, ordinances and resolutions which relate to matters of public concern and/or matters of frequent inquiry about Fulton County and to organize these provisions in a manner that is logical and easy to follow. In addition, for the first time, the Code of Laws contains Appendices which set forth in their entirety certain regulations which heretofore have been separately codified, so as to allow for more easy reference to these regulations.
It must be noted that the laws, ordinances, resolutions and regulations which are contained in the Code of Laws are current as of the date of this codification. The reader is advised to shepardize the constitutional and state law provisions to ensure that there have been no amendments or repeals. With respect to the Code of Ordinances and Code of Resolutions, the reader should contact the Clerk to the Board of Commissioners of Fulton County to ensure that the ordinances and resolutions remain in full force and effect.
A special thanks is due to the Board of Commissioners of Fulton County for their initiative and funding in this endeavor. Acknowledgment is made with appreciation for the cooperation and assistance of Ms. Justine Boyd, Clerk to the Board of Commissioners, and her assistant, Mr. Charles Downey. Appreciation is offered to the members of the County Attorney's staff in drafting the original resolutions and ordinances, and particularly to Ms. Viviane Haight for assistance in assembling the legislation to be included in this Code of Laws.
Susan B. Forsling
County AttorneyPUBLISHER'S PREFACE
This Code constitutes a complete recodification of the general and permanent legislation of Fulton County, Georgia. Part I is a compilation of local acts and constitutional amendments deemed advisable to be included. (The user is cautioned that portions of acts (or in some cases, entire acts) may be obsolete). Part II consists of subparts A and B. Subpart A is a recodification of the general and permanent ordinances of the county. Subpart B is a codification of resolutions that appear to be of general interest. In the preparation of part II, the style of the legislation has been ignored so that material that is penal in nature has been classified as an ordinance and material that is not penal has been classified as a resolution.
Source materials used in the preparation of the Code were the 1983 Code, as supplemented through May 4, 1988, and ordinances subsequently adopted by the board of commissioners. The source of each section is included in the history note appearing in parentheses at the end thereof. The absence of such a note indicates that the section is new and was adopted for the first time with the adoption of the Code. By use of the comparative tables appearing in the back of this Code, the reader can locate any section of the 1983 Code, as supplemented, and any subsequent legislation included herein.
The chapters of the Code have been conveniently arranged in alphabetical order, and the various sections within each chapter have been catchlined to facilitate usage. Notes which tie related sections of the Code together and which refer to relevant state law have been included. A table listing the state law citations and setting forth their location within the Code is included at the back of this Code.
Chapter and Section Numbering System
The chapter and section numbering system used in this Code is the same system used in many state and local government codes. Each section number consists of two parts separated by a dash. The figure before the dash refers to the chapter number, and the figure after the dash refers to the position of the section within the chapter. Thus, the second section of chapter 1 is numbered 1-2, and the first section of chapter 6 is 6-1. Under this system, each section is identified with its chapter, and at the same time new sections can be inserted in their proper place by using the decimal system for amendments. For example, if new material consisting of one section that would logically come between sections 6-1 and 6-2 is desired to be added, such new section would be numbered 6-1.5. New articles and new divisions may be included in the same way or, in the case of articles, may be placed at the end of the chapter embracing the subject, and, in the case of divisions, may be placed at the end of the article embracing the subject. The next successive number shall be assigned to the new article or division. New chapters may be included by using one of the reserved chapter numbers. Care should be taken that the alphabetical arrangement of chapters is maintained when including new chapters.
Page Numbering System
The page numbering system used in this Code is a prefix system. The letters to the left of the colon are an abbreviation which represents a certain portion of the volume. The number to the right of the colon represents the number of the page in that portion. In the case of a chapter of the Code, the number to the left of the colon indicates the number of the chapter. In the case of an appendix to the Code, the letter immediately to the left of the colon indicates the letter of the appendix. The following are typical parts of codes of ordinances, which may or may not appear in this Code at this time, and their corresponding prefixes:
LOCAL CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS AND LOCAL ACTS LCALA1:1 LOCAL CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS AND LOCAL ACTS APPENDIX LCALA A:1 LOCAL CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS AND LOCAL ACTS COMPARATIVE TABLE LCALACT:1 CODE CD1:1 CODE APPENDIX CDA:1 CODE COMPARATIVE TABLES CCT:1 STATE LAW REFERENCE TABLE SLT:1 LOCAL CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS AND LOCAL ACTS INDEX LCALAi:1 CODE INDEX CDi:1 Indexes
The indexes have been prepared with the greatest of care. Each particular item has been placed under several headings, some of which are couched in lay phraseology, others in legal terminology, and still others in language generally used by local government officials and employees. There are numerous cross references within the indexes themselves which stand as guideposts to direct the user to the particular item in which the user is interested.
Looseleaf Supplements
A special feature of this publication is the looseleaf system of binding and supplemental servicing of the publication. With this system, the publication will be kept up-to-date. Subsequent amendatory legislation will be properly edited, and the affected page or pages will be reprinted. These new pages will be distributed to holders of copies of the publication, with instructions for the manner of inserting the new pages and deleting the obsolete pages.
Keeping this publication up-to-date at all times will depend largely upon the holder of the publication. As revised pages are received, it will then become the responsibility of the holder to have the amendments inserted according to the attached instructions. It is strongly recommended by the publisher that all such amendments be inserted immediately upon receipt to avoid misplacing them and, in addition, that all deleted pages be saved and filed for historical reference purposes.
Acknowledgments
This publication was under the direct supervision of Roger D. Merriam, Supervising Editor, and Robert MacNaughton, Editor, of the Municipal Code Corporation, Tallahassee, Florida. Credit is gratefully given to the other members of the publisher's staff for their sincere interest and able assistance throughout the project.
The publisher is most grateful to Ms. Susan B. Forsling, County Attorney, Ms. Viviane M. Haight, Senior Assistant Staff Counsel, Ms. Justine Boyd, Clerk to the Board of Commissioners, and Mr. Charles Downey, Administrative Operations Analyst, for their cooperation and assistance during the progress of the work on this publication. It is hoped that their efforts and those of the publisher have resulted in a Code of Ordinances which will make the active law of the county readily accessible to all citizens and which will be a valuable tool in the day-to-day administration of the county's affairs.
ADOPTING ORDINANCE
ORDINANCE NO. 97-1054An Ordinance Adopting and Enacting a New Code for Fulton County, Georgia; Providing for the Repeal of Certain Ordinances Not Included Therein; Providing a Penalty for the Violation Thereof; Providing for the Manner of Amending Such Code; and Providing When Such Code and This Ordinance Shall Become Effective.
Be It Ordained by the Board of County Commissioners of Fulton County, Georgia:
Section 1. The Code entitled "Code of Ordinances of Fulton County, Georgia" published by Municipal Code Corporation consisting of Chapters 1 through 86, each inclusive, is adopted.
Section 2. All ordinances of a general and permanent nature enacted on or before March 5, 1997, and not included in the Code or recognized and continued in force by reference therein, are repealed.
Section 3. The repeal provided for in section 2 hereof shall not be construed to revive any ordinance or part thereof that has been repealed by a subsequent ordinance that is repealed by this ordinance.
Section 4. Unless another penalty is expressly provided, every person convicted of a violation of any provision of the Code, or any ordinance, rule or regulation adopted or issued pursuant thereto, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $1,000.00, imprisonment in the county jail for a term not exceeding 60 days or any combination thereof. The penalty provided by this section, unless another penalty is expressly provided, shall apply to the amendment of any Code section, whether or not such penalty is reenacted in the amendatory ordinance. In addition to the penalty prescribed above, the county may pursue other remedies such as abatement of nuisances, injunctive relief, and revocation of licenses or permits.
Section 5. Notwithstanding section 2 above, all fees, taxes, charges and assessments adopted pursuant to the 1983 Code of Laws of Fulton County, Georgia, or in existence on the date of adoption of this ordinance are hereby ratified and confirmed.
Section 6. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, the Subdivision Regulations and the Zoning Resolution as set forth in Appendices "A" and "B", respectively, of the Code of Ordinances of Fulton County, Georgia, shall not be deemed to have been repealed and readopted but, shall be deemed only to have been republished for ease of reference.
Section 7. Additions or amendments to the Code when passed in the form as to indicate the intention of the county commission to make the same a part of the Code shall be deemed to be incorporated in the Code, so that reference to the Code includes the additions and amendments.
Section 8. Ordinances adopted after March 5, 1997, that amend or refer to ordinances that have been codified in the Code shall be construed as if they amend or refer to like provisions of the Code.
Section 9. This Ordinance shall become effective as provided by law.
Enacted by the Board of County Commissioners of Fulton County this 20th day of August, 1997.
/s/ Mitch J. Skandalakis
Mitch J. Skandalakis, Chairman
Board of Commissioners of
Fulton County, GeorgiaATTEST:
APPROVED AS TO FORM:/s/ Susan B. Forsling
Justine Boyd, Clerk to
Susan B. Forsling, County Attorney
CommissionADOPTING RESOLUTION
RESOLUTION NO. 97-1053A Resolution Adopting and Enacting a Code of Resolutions for Fulton County, Georgia; Providing for the Manner of Amending Such Code; Providing When This Resolution Becomes Effective.
Be It Resolved by the Board of Commissioners of Fulton County, Georgia:
Section 1. The Code entitled "Code of Resolutions of Fulton County, Georgia" published by Municipal Code Corporation consisting of chapters 101 through 182[178], each inclusive is adopted.
Section 2. All resolutions enacted on or before March 5, 1997, that are inconsistent with the Code are repealed. The absence of a resolution from the Code does not make the resolution inconsistent with the Code.
Section 3. The repeal provided for in section 2 is not to be construed to revive any legislation that was repealed by legislation that is repealed by this resolution.
Section 4. Additions or amendments to the Code when passed in the form as to indicate the intention of the board of commissioners to make the same a part of the Code shall be deemed to be incorporated in the Code, so that reference to the Code includes the additions and amendments.
Section 5. Legislation adopted after March 7, 1997, that amends or refers to legislation that has been codified in the Code, shall be construed as if it amends or refers to like provisions of the Code.
Section 6. Notwithstanding section 2 above, all fees, taxes, charges and assessments adopted or in existence on the date of adoption of this Resolution are hereby ratified and confirmed.
Section 7. Notwithstanding anything to contrary contained herein, the Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) and Female Business Enterprise (FBE) Programs as set forth in § 102-401 et seq. of the Code of Resolutions of Fulton County, Georgia shall not be deemed to have been repealed and readopted but, shall be deemed only to have been republished for ease of reference.
Section 8. This resolution becomes effective upon adoption.
Passed and adopted by the Board of Commissioners of Fulton County this 20th day of August, 1997.
/s/ Mitch J. Skandalakis
Mitch J. Skandalakis, Chairman
Board of Commissioners of
Fulton County, GeorgiaATTEST:
APPROVED AS TO FORM:/s/ Susan B. Forsling
Justine Boyd, Clerk to
Susan B. Forsling, County Attorney
Commission